Romance at the Burrow
by Phoenixica24
Summary: Fred and George get pranked the one time they try to help their parents! -Originally written for Hogwarts Online's April 2011 challenge, but I only recently found the file on my laptop. Enjoy!


**A/N: Written for Hogwarts Online forum's April 2011 challenge.**

**Thanks to my wonderful beta Dest! Great job, and thanks again!**

Sunlight flowed over the rundown yet homey house called the Burrow. And it was like a burrow, with a large family and many rooms and halls and stairways. But it was also a happy place. And peaceful, but only for the moment.

Everyone inside was asleep, or, at least quiet enough to maybe be asleep, as Fred Weasley awoke. He looked across the room at the mirror their mother had insisted on so they didn't "just roll out of bed and head on out one day", which they now did every day. The one purpose it served for the twins was so they could see each other when they were both in bed.

Now, it showed Fred that George was still sleeping. He smirked and leapt lightly out of bed, landing catlike on the floor. He sneaked outside and slowly strolled into the fields before picking up his pace, running until he was flying along the track he'd found a few days ago. This was his one secret from the rest of the family. His one private moment.

The track curved around all too soon, and he was back at the Burrow. He sneaked inside and went to go and change. George awoke as his brother yanked a shirt over his head. Stretching and yawning, he grabbed a pole from the ceiling beside him and chucked it at his twin.

"Wide awake, huh? As always. Too good to sleep in now?" he teased.

Fred tossed the pole back. "Whatever."

"Aww, c'mon. What is it?" George asked.

"Haven't you noticed how Mum and Dad are always looking after us, and not spending any time together since before Gin was born?"

"Yeah..."

"Their anniversary's coming up."

"We gonna prank it?"

"No. We're gonna make it special!"

"We're gonna prank it."

"We're gonna prank it romantically."

"As long as we're pranking it, I don't care!" George whooped.

"SHHHH!" Fred scolded. "It's in three days! We have to hurry!"

"Are we gonna let Ronniekins and Gin help?"

"If they want to." Fred conceded after a moment.

The twins dressed and quickly went down to breakfast.

"Hey." Ron said, without looking up from his sausages. "Mum says you two have to de-gnome the garden today."

"Where's Gin?" Fred asked.

"Taking care of the chickens. Why?"

"We gotta talk to you two. We're gonna prank Mum and Dad in three days. We need your help."

"ALL RIGHT!" Ron yelped.

"Meet us out in the garden in ten minutes. Bring Gin. _Don't_ say a word to Mum or Dad. Got it?" Fred asked.

"Yessir!" Ron shoved his plate away and bolted.

"He actually left his food. Amazing." George commented.

The twins ate a quick breakfast and darted outside. They scuffled for a brief moment, simply for old times' sake, as they used to fight over who started the de-gnoming. Fred lost, right as Ron and Ginny showed up. He pushed George off of him and stood. "C'mere," he beckoned his siblings.

"Is Percy going to help?" Ginny asked.

"If he wants. If you tell him, make sure Mum and Dad can't hear." George told his little sister.

"Okay, Weasleys, listen up!" Fred barked, sounding remarkably like his father. "We need the talents of everyone here to pull this off. We are going to make Mum and Dad's anniversary in three days something special. It will be _romantic_ for them. Got it?"

He continued as the others nodded. "Ron, we need you to distract them whenever we tell you. Or if we give the signal."

"What signal?" Ron asked.

"We'll establish one later. In a moment." George promised, seeing the crestfallen look on Ron's face.

"Yes. Ginny, we need a girl's idea of romantic. George and I will set things up, since we are the only ones who can do magic. No, Ron, no wand, no magic. You haven't gone to Diagon Alley yet."

Ron huffed. "Signal?" he asked.

"Gnome." George offered, holding up a gnome.

All four Weasleys laughed and agreed for that to be their signal to Ron.

"We start now." Fred intoned. "As we all de-gnome the garden."

They each picked a section of the garden and started working. Mrs. Weasley was inside cleaning, and Mr. Weasley was at work. The children were alone. No one knew where Percy was, and no one really cared. Or even noticed.

"So, Gin, what's your idea of a perfect anniversary?" Fred asked.

"Hmmm...I would like flowers and a fancy dinner." she answered carefully.

"What's Mum's favorite flowers, colors, and foods?" George asked.

"Red roses, red and gold-she's a Gryffindor, duh!, and I don't know. She seems to like an awful lot of foods."

"I know!" Ron broke in. "She likes chocolates!"

"So we have to get red and gold decorations, chocolates, and roses? That's expensive." George said carefully. They all sat and stared at one another. Then Fred said, "We can pick roses somewhere in the fields where she won't notice, and mix some other flowers in. Changing colors of things isn't hard-I can do that. The only things we'll have to buy are chocolates. And dinner?"

"Hire a house-elf for a day?" George suggested. "Only Mum cooks, you know that."

"Who says she can't? She will know it's their anniversary, so she'll probably make something special. All we have to do is get her out long enough to set it up so it looks fancy. I know where her fancy china is, if you promise not to drop anything, I'll show you later today. There's a bowl that would be perfect for chocolates. But what kind are we going to get?" Ginny commented.

"Hmmm...something nice that we can afford. We can pool our allowances and Ginny and I can go to town. Maybe I can earn something by doing magic tricks or whatever." Fred grunted as he hurled the last gnome over the wall.

"Wow, that certainly went by faster than usual." Ron remarked.

"That it did, little brother. Go tell Mum we're done and going to town and we'll be back for lunch. Everyone else, bring your allowances. Meet in our room." George told them.

Alone in their room, Fred turned to his twin. "So?"

"So what?" George asked.

"What do you think? It'll be lots of work to keep this secret, and we only have three days to pull this together."

"I think it's nice that you're trying to do something sweet for our parents, and even if something goes wrong, it's the thought that counts. As long as we're careful, nothing should go wrong." George replied. "Don't worry."

Ginny and Ron burst into their room in a panic. "Percy!" Ron hissed.

"Easy." George said, flicking his wand. The door slammed shut in the eldest brother's face, and the lock clicked.

They pooled their money, and didn't need to be told that it was pitiful.

After much discussion, they decided on extra chores for the next three days. Ginny would polish the fancy china, Ron would do everyone's normal chores when Mum wasn't looking, and Fred and George would go to town every day to try and earn the money they needed.

By this time, it was late, so Fred and George left, and Percy caught Ginny sneaking into the pantry.

"MUM!" he cried. Mrs. Weasley was upset with her only daughter and youngest child, and grounded her for a week.

"But Mum, I was only-" Ginny protested, then broke off mid-sentence. She couldn't give away their secret!

"Only what?"

"Nothing." the little redhead bowed her head in shame.

"To your rooms, both of you!" Mrs. Weasley snapped.

As she went upstairs without further complaint, Ginny came up with a plan.

At dinner that night, she complained to her mother, "Mum, I don't feel good."

"What's wrong, Gin?" her mother asked.

"My tummy hurts." Ginny said, using her 'I'm a small, innocent little girl' voice.

"Oh, dearie, it'll feel better soon. Here," and she gave Ginny some awful-tasting medicine. "Now upstairs to bed. The more you rest, the sooner you'll feel better."

The three brothers who were in on 'The Plan' worried as they ate, and no one ate much. Mrs. Weasley sent everyone to bed early.

After making sure everyone else was asleep, Ginny crept out of her room and sneaked downstairs. She polished china until Fred came down for his run and sent her back to bed. She slept the day away while the others worked. She worked by night, and they worked by day, for the next two days.

On the day of their parents anniversary, Mrs. Weasley started dinner early, so the children had some time to work. Fred went out and bought the nice chocolates they had picked out the first day, barely affording a round dozen of them, and sneaked them into the house. He gave them to Ginny, who was arranging the china as Ron distracted Percy, as was the necessary addition to his job.

George was really sick, for real, and stayed in bed all day, also serving as a distraction. He would run to the bathroom every time anyone who was not in on the secret got too close to Ginny's hiding place.

Fred went out and gathered flowers from the beds Ginny had found the morning before and brought them to the window near Ginny's hiding place. He whistled softly, and Ron came running.

"Tell Ginny I have the flowers here." Fred whispered. Ron nodded and ran back off. He darted past his mother and ran for Ginny. Mrs. Weasley was steadily growing suspicious, but George went flying by with his hand over his mouth, and she backed off just long enough for Ron to warn both Ginny and George, so when she arrived, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

Things got a little more complicated when Mr. Weasley got home, as he liked to talk with his children. All of them. Ron enlisted Percy without the latter's knowledge, and got them started talking about government. Then he could slip silently away, with no one the wiser.

The worst problem, of course, came last-minute. How were they going to get their parents out of the house long enough to transfigure the kitchen and set out the china with the chocolates and flowers?

George solved that problem without his knowledge. He accidentally tripped on the stairs and fell through a second-story window. He landed in the bushes below unhurt, not counting minor scrapes from the thorns, but terribly messy and sick. Both his parents went out to tend to him, and he signaled Fred, who was peering out an upstairs window, to get on with it, that he was fine.

Fred relayed George's message to the others and together, they shooed Percy outside as well. Or attempted to. They ended up locking him in his room and casting a Silencing Charm on his door.

Ginny rushed back and forth, not allowing anyone else to touch the china or food. Ron was allowed to carefully place the flowers on the table under her sharp eye, and then let their parents and George in another way, so they couldn't see the kitchen.

Fred transfigured the room into patterns of red and gold lions. Then they all ducked out the door, except for Ginny, who squeaked in panic as their parents descended the stairs and darted back in to light the candles everywhere.

They slipped in the back door and went quietly to their rooms.

The next morning, Fred went downstairs late, and found his mother singing at the stove.

"Hi, Mum."

"Hello, mister. Sit down, won't you?" she ordered. He gulped, they were in for it.

"Mum?"

"Your siblings spilled the beans this morning when they got up. What on earth possessed you to do all that? And go and spend your siblings allowances?"

"I just thought-cause you and Dad are always taking care of us or working or doing chores, and you're not in love anymore, that I wanted to help you fall back in love with each other and-"

"What makes you think that?" she asked in a deadly tone.

"You never talk to each other except for work, money, or us, and you never hug or kiss anymore." Fred whispered.

"How did you know yesterday was our anniversary?"

"I overheard Aunty talking about it on Gin's birthday last year." he replied.

"You silly boy," his mother laughed. "She was talking about my mum's anniversary! Your father's and my anniversary was months ago!"

Fred blushed. "Sorry, Mum." he muttered.

"That's all right, honey. Now you know, and it was a very special dinner last night. It's nice to know you thought of it, and it's the thought that counts. Now go on, your father has something for you."

Fred went outside and gasped. All his siblings, even Percy, were flying around on new-to them, anyway-brooms! His father stood to one side and held out the last one to Fred.

"Saved the best for last, son. Thank you for last night." he hugged his son and stood back as Fred soared into the air to play Quidditch with his brothers and sister.

**Please review!**


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